Sofa bed



April 28, 1970 R'. M. DUKELLIS ET AL 3,508,283

SOFA BED 6 Sheetqs-Sheet 1 Filed April 25, 1968 April 28, 1970 R. M.DUKELLIS ET AL 3,508,283

SOFA BED Filed April 25, 1968 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 g!!! (ign QI 5 N April28, 1970 R, M DUKELUS ET AL 3,508,283

SOFA BED Filed April 25, 1968 GSheets-Sheet 5 April 2s, 1970 Filed April25. 1968 R. M. DUKELLls ET Al.

SOFA BED 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 April 2s, 1970 R M DUKELLIS l ET AL 3,508,283

SOFA BED Filed April 25, 1968 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 prl 28, 1970 R, MDUKELLIS ET A1. 3,508,283

SOFA BED Filed April 25, 1968 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 /A/VENTOPS 7' TORNEIUnited States Patent O 3,508,283 SOFA BED Robert M. Dukellis, Whittier,and Arthur R. Fiori,

Downey, Calif., assignors to Interlake Steel Corporation, Chicago, Ill.,a corporation of New York Filed Apr. 25, 1968, Ser. No. 724,188 Int. Cl.A47c 17/22 U.S. Cl. 5-13 11 Claims ABSTRACT 0F THE DISCLOSURE A sofa bedof a type having folding bed mechanism concealed behind a iixed frontrail on the base of the sofa bed when the folded bed mechanism is in itsfolded position. The folding bed mechanism includes improved linkage:arranged to minimize the vertical range of movement of the mechanismfor lower seat and bed heights and to accommodate thicker mattresses andpillows and still permit convenient folding and unfolding over the irstfront rail.- A double spring means is also provided for facilitatinginitiation of both folding and unfolding of the sofa bed.

This invention relates to an improved folding bed mechanism for a sofabed of a type wherein the folding bed mechanism is entirely concealedbehind a fixed front rail on the base of the sofa bed when the foldingbed mechanism is in its folded position.

An important goal of furniture manufacturers is to produce sofa bedswhich have the outward appearance of standard sofas or davenports withno evidence that the sofa contains a folding bed structure. In the earlydevelopment of convertible sofas, they were styled with a relativelyhigh and square appearance with ample room behind the sofa bed frontrail to conceal the folding bed mechanism that folded in four sectionsto a position above the sofa bed frame and which could be simply pivotedover to drop into a position behind the front rail. These four sectionedstructures were practical because the innerspring mattress was then anovelty and users were satisfied even with a relatively thin pad ormattress that was easily rolled to accommodate the folding mechanism.

The high and bulky appearance in furniture styling is no longer the fullvogue. Instead, the trend is to relatively low and deeply upholsteredpieces and there has been greater demand for more comfortable sofa beds,thus requiring a thicker and more comfortable folding mattress which hasimposed a greater difficulty in the design of the folding bed structurefor sofa beds. Although some of the problems were overcome by the use oftwo front rails on the sofa bed with the upper front rail attached tothe folding bed mechanism and the lower of the rails mounted in a iixedposition on the sofa bed frame, with both rails being upholstered withtrim boards, this longitudinal split caused by the use of two rails hasmade it obvious that the unit is a sofa bed rather than sa c-onventionalsofa or davenport. Consequently, folding bed mechanisms have beenprovided which have eliminated the use of two front rails, but they havehad other disadvantages.

It is the principal object of this invention to provide an improvedfolding bed structure for a sofa bed which overcomes s-ome of the majordifficulties associated with prior art folding bed structures.

Some of the disadvantages of known prior art structures are as follows:

(l) The low level of the hinge connection between the head section andthe inner section of the folding bed frame part of the folding bedstructure mechanism pivots or swings too low to the Hoor when thestructure is being moved between its folded and unfolded positions. Infact, this level is so low that such mechanism commonly scrape the flooror rug, especially .a rug of deep pile. This is not only injurious tothe oor or carpeting but the dragging makes it more difficult to operatethe folding mechanism.

(2) It is common to have part of the folding linkage extending into theupper reaches of the sofa bed back where it minimizes the facility foraccommodating the sofa bed to desirable styling, deeper and morecomfortable sofa backs or the use of loose pillow backs.

(3) Both the seat and bed levels of existing sofas are higher thandesired and this makes it difficult to provide thicker and morecomfortable seat pillows and mattresses.

It is another object of this invention to overcome these disadvantagesby providing higher low level swinging of the hinge connection betweenthe head section and the inner section of the bed frame, by eliminationof substantially all of the linkage mechanism in the upper reaches ofthe sofa back, and by providing improved mechanism with both lower seatand bed positions to permit the use of thicker and more comfortable seatpillows and mattresses and more versatile styling of sofa beds.

It is still another object of the invention to provide a folding bedmechanism for a sofa bed which is generally movable through a smallervertical range of movement when folded or unfolded to thereby providethe lower seat and bed positions.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a folding bed mechanismwhich permits the head section of the mechanism to travel a pathmaximizing clearance l tween it and the back portions of the sofa bedframe in order to accommodate a thick mattress and clearance for it whenthe mechanism is moved between its sofa and bed positions.

It is another object of the invention to provide an improved springbiasing arrangement for sofa bed employing two sets of springs. Theiirst set is :arranged to assist in lifting the folded bed structure outof the sofa bed frame when it is desired to unfold the mechanism. Thesecond set of springs is employed for assisting in lifting the outer bedsection of the structure when folding the bed against the weight of themattress and the mechanism. It also assists in preventing the bed, whenbeing unfolded from dropping heavily on its center legs which can causeinjury to the floor or carpeting.

Other advantages and objects of the invention can be understood uponreference to the accompanying drawings in which: j,

FIGURE 1 shows a longitudinal vertical sectional view of a sofa bedembodying the invention, the section being taken substantially along theline 1-1 of PIG. 7 with the upholstery illustrated in dotted outline;

FIG. 2 shows a longitudinal vertical sectional view similar to FIG. lexcept with a portion of the outer sections of the folding mechanismpartially folded;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view similar to FIGS. l and 2, except that thefolding structure is shown in an inclined partially folded position;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 except that the folding mechanism isshown entirely folded into its position within the sofa bed frame;

FIG. 5 shows a sectional view similar to FIG. 3, except with part of themechanism not in view and with the parts shown in positions with thefolding mechanism slightly folded beyond the fully unfolded condition;

FIG. V6 shows a perspective view of the parts shown in their positionsin FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 shows a horizontal sectional view viewed along the line 7 7 ofFIG. l;

FIG. 8 shows a fragmentary view similar to FIG. 7, lon :an enlargedscale, illustrating particularly the supporting mechanism for the bedstructure;

FIG. 9 shows a fragmenntary section view taken along the lines 9 9 ofFIG. 3 and FIG. 10 shows a fragmentnary plan view of a corner portion ofthe bed as viewed along the line 10-10 of FIG. 9.

With reference to the drawings in greater detail, and referring first toFIGS. 1 and 9, the sofa bed of the present invention is provided 'with awooden sofa bed frame, indicated generally at 10, the frame including abase 11, a back structure indicated generally at 12, and arm structuresindicated generally at 13. The base portion includes a fixed front rail14 having a planar top surface 14a, a fixed back panel 15, and xed endrails 16. The back structure 12 includes a slightly inclined top member12a that extends forwardly from the back panel 15, and at the forwardedge of the top member 12a are a plurality of inclined front frame bars12b, the lower ends of.` which are connected by a bottom cross member12C. The lower end of cross member 12C terminates in a plane which isspaced above the plane of the top surface 14a of front rail 14 by adistance which is only a small fraction of the height of the front rail.It will become evident from a description appearing hereinafter of thefolding bed structure that the relationship between the top of the fixedfront rail and the bottom crossbar of the back rest provides a veryrestricted space within which the bed structure must move between afully folded position within the base of the frame and a partiallyunfolded position with certain portions of the bed structure disposedabove the plane of the upper surface of the front rail. Heretofore,those skilled in the art did not think it was possible to utilize afixed front rail of the height shown in the drawings with a folding bedstructure of the type hereafter described. The inclined frame bars 12boccupy the proper position with respect to a vertical plane to afford acomfortable back position; and conventional upholstering U, illustratedin dot-dash lines in FIG. l, is secured to the upright frame bars 12band the bottom cross member 12C. The arm structures 13 include endpanels 13a and horizontal top rails 13b which are upholstered in thefinished sofa bed unit.

Since the mechanism at both sides of the folding bed structure isidentical, only the complete mechanism at one side of the structure isillustrated in the drawings, and it is to be understood that the side ofthe bed structure not shown in the drawings has an identical set ofelements with those illustrated in the drawings and here described.

The folding hed mechanism includes a pair of mounting bracket :meansindicated generally at 17, each said means including a main bracket 18which is secured to one of the base end rails 16 by means of fasteners18a. Adjacent the rear of the main bracket 18 is an upright bracketmember 20 which is rigidly fixed in position by means of a xed brace20a.

The folding bed structure, indicated generally at 21, includes a headbed section 22 having side rails 22b, an inner bed section 23, a hingedbed section 24 and an outer or foot bed section 25, which are foldablyconnected to one another by means of pivots 22a, 23a and 24a. Thefolding bed structure is supported in the sofa bed frame for movementbetween the bed position of FIG. 1 and the sofa position of FIG. 4 bymeans of inner support arms, or hanger links 26a and 26b which arepivoted together at pivot 26C. The first hanger link 26a is pivoted tothe upright bracket member 20 at pivot 27 while the hanger link 26h ispivoted to the head bed section 22 at pivot 26d.

Also supporting the bed structure 21 in the sofa frame are forwardsupport arms 29 which are pivoted at 30 on the bracket 18 and havepivots 31 at their upper ends. Head suspension links 32 are connected tothe pivots 31 at one end to the head bed section 22 at the other `end bymeans of pivots 33. Bell crank levers 34 are pivotally connected at 35to the inner bed section 23 and have arms 36 that are also pivotallyconnected to the upright supports arms 29 at the pivots 33. Also, thesuspension means for the bed structure 21 includes first and secondcoordinating links 37a and 37b. First coordinating link 37a is pivotedon hanger link 26b at pivot 37C at one end and at its other end at pivot37d to the support arm 29. The second coordinating link 37b is pivotedat pivot 37e to the hanger link 36a at one end and at its other end atpivot 37f to the support arm 29.

The bell crank lever 34 is guided on a headed stud 34a traveling in anarcuate slot 34b in the bell crank lever 34 in order to prevent lateralshifting of the bell crank lever 34 and the other links attached to itas the mechanism is folded and unfolded. Likewise, as seen iin FIG. 1,the head suspension links 32 are offset in their intermediate regions sothat they rest upon the head section 22 and the inner section 23 in theregion of the pivot 22a to lock the bed sections 22 and 23 againstupward movement past the horizontal at the pivot 22a when weight isconcentrated near the head of the bed, as by a person sitting up in bedleaning against the upholstered back.

As is customary in four-section folding beds, the bed first unfolds fromthe sofa position of FIG. 4 through the partially folded position ofFIG. 3 and the intermediate position of FIG. 5 to a further intermediateposition shown in FIG. 2 in which the head bed section 22 and the innerbed section 23 are coplanar and extend forwardly over the first frontrail 14, While the hinge bed section 24 is substantially at right anglesto the inner bed section 23 and the outer bed section 25 is invertedabove the inner bed section 23. In this position, and in the bedposition of FIG. l, intermediate legs 47 which are carried on the bedsection pivots 23a occupy an upright supporting position with respect tothe inner bed position 23 and movement of the intermediate legs 47between their folded and supporting positions isproduced by intermediateleg actuating links 48 -which are pivotally connected at 49 to secondarms 50 of the bell cranks 34 and which are pivotally connected at 51 tothe intermediate legs 47.

Comparison of FIGS. l, 3 and 4 shows that in moving from folded positionto bed position the pivots 26d that connect the second hanger link 26bwith the head bed frame 22 move from a position rear of andsubstantially above the pivots 27, to a position forward of andsubstantially above the pivots 27. This differs from other folding bedstructures in which the pivotal connection between the hanger links andthe head bed section 22b has commonly been either a substantial distancebelow the pivots 27 or in horizontal alignment therewith in bedposition. With this arrangement, the inner end of the head bed section22b, and the top edge of a mattress supported on the folding bedstructure can easily clear the lower edge of the back frame bottomcross-member 12C during movement of the bed structure betweenintermediate position and sofa position.

It will be noted that when moving from the fully folded position shownin FIG. 4 to the partially folded position shown in FIG. 3, the bedsections 22-25 swing as a unit on the hanger arms 26a and 26b andforward support arms 29, and therey is no relative movement between thebed sections 22-25 so that they occupy the same relative relationship inthe partially folded position in FIG. 3 as in the fully folded positionof FIG. 4. The lengths of hanger arms 26a and 26b are related to thelengths of the forward support arms 29 in such a manner that the locusof pivots 23a connecting sections 23 and 24 is substantially vertical inmoving from the fully folded position of FIG. 4 to the partially foldedposition of FIG. 3. The relationship of the length of hanger arms 26aand 26b to the lengths of the forward supporting arms 29 enables the bedstructure 21 to move to the steeply inclined position shown in FIG. 3'without interference with the fixed front rail 14 or the backrestcrossbar 12C. Additionally, it will be noted that bell crank 34 occupiesthe same position relative to inner bed section 23 in both the FIGS. 3and 4 positions, so that the unfolding of the intermediate legs 47 isnot initiated until after the bed structure 21 reaches the position ofFIG. 3. It is important that the unfolding of legs 47 is delayed untilthe bed structure 21 is moved to a position where the unfolding of legs47 will not interfere with the fixed front rail 14.

When the bed structure 21 is in the intermediate position, wherein thehead bed section 22 and the inner bed section 23 are coplanar and extendforwardly over the fixed front rail 14, while the hinge bed section 24is substantially at right angles to the inner bed section 23, it may befurther converted to bed position by grasping the end of the outer bedsection 25 and turning said bed section and the hinge bed section 24outwardly to the bed position of FIG. 1, in which they are coplanar withthe other bed sections. As best seen in FIG. 1, in bed position theouter bed section 25 is supported by outer legs 53 that are pivoted at54 on said bed section, and folding or unfolding of the legs 53 isaccomplished through links 55 that are pivotally connected at S6 to saidouter legs and at 57 t0 the hinge bed section 24.

The use of two coordinating links, first coordinating link 37a andsecond coordinating link 37b, in combination with the two hanger links26a and 2617 instead of a single hanger link, provides a linkage motionin which the low level indicated at 100 in FIG. 3 of the pivotconnection between bed sections 22 and 23 is higher than on priordevices using other linkage arrangements. This is advantageous becauseit permits the sofa bed to be constructed lower to the floor withoutdeleterious rubbing of this pivot portion on the oor or carpet. Thislinkage also provides the advantage of lower seat and bed positionswhich permits the use of thicker and more comfortable seat pillows andmattress. In other words, even though the bed mechanism must be elevatedover the front rail 14 to move -between the bed and sofa positions, thelinkage provided permits this to be accomplished within a smallervertical range of movement of the bed sections 22 and 23.

When folding and unfolding the 4bed structure, it is desirable tominimize the effort required in either direction. In order to assist inthe elevation of the unfolded bed structure in bed position, as shown inFIG. l, a tension spring 58 is provided between a projecting portion 20bon the upright bracket member 20 and the support arm 29. As an example,it has been determined that the use of this spring can reduce thelifting force from about 65 pounds to 30 pounds at the end of the outerbed section 25 when a mattress is in place. A double set of springs `59is provided between a bracket 60 at the inner end of second coordinatinglink 37b and a `bracket 61 attached to the forward support arm 29. Adouble set is employed because one spring would require too large adiameter. This set of springs '9 assist in urging the folded bed sectionfrom its completely folded position of FIG. 4 to the intermediateposition shown in FIG. 3. Furthermore, these springs 58 and 59, whenunder tension, keep the linkage mechanism tight by eliminating any playor free movement at the pivots caused by loose fits of the parts. Itshould be observed that the springs 58 are under tension and the springsets 59 are slackened when the bed fram-e is in the position as shown inFIG. l. The opposite condition exists when the bed frame is in theposition as shown in FIG. 4 where the springs 58 are slackened and thespring sets 59 are under tension.

The invention is defined by the appending claims in which we claim:

1. In a folding sofa bed, in combination: a base having a fixed rearrail, a pair of fixed end rails, and a fixed front rail; a folding 4bedstructure including a head bed section,

an inner bed section pivoted on the outer end of the head section, ahinge bed section pivoted on the outer end of the inner section, and anouter bed section pivoted on the outer end of the hinge section, saidhinge and outer sections being movable between a coplanar bed positionand a partially folded position with the hinge section generally uprightand the outer section inverted above the inner section; bed supportingmeans including a pair of first and second hanger links supporting theinner end of the head bed section on the end rails near the rear rail, apair of support arms pivoted on the end rails near the front rail, apair of head suspension links connecting the free ends of the supportarms to the head section, a pair of first coordinating links connectedbetween upper portions of the support arms and the second hanger links,and a pair of second coordinating links connected between intermediateportions of the support arms and the first hanger links, said bedsupporting means being swingable to move the head and inner sectionsbetween a coplanar bed position and a folded position with the headsection generally upright at the rear of the base and the inner sectionwithin and at the bottom of the =base.

2. In a folding sofa bed as defined by claim 1 characterized by, and apulling linkage actuated by swinging movement of th-e bed supportingmeans to pull the outer section substantially into parallelism with theinner section as the bed is folded into the base, said bed supportingmeans and said pulling linkage being coordinated to position the outersection wholly beneath the plane of the top surface of the base frontrail in folded position.

3. In a folding sofa :bed as defined by claim 1 characterized by, firstbias means reacting against the support arms to urge them into onedirection to assist in overcoming the forces resisting folding of thefolding bed structure, and second bias means reacting against thesupport arms to urge them into the opposite direction to assist inovercoming the forces resisting unfolding of the folding :bed structure.

4. In a folding sofa bed as defined by claim 3 characterized by, saidrst and second bias means being springs.

5. In a folding sofa bed as defined by claim 2 characterized by, firstbias means reacting against the support arms to urge them into onedirection to assist in overcoming the forces resisting folding of thefolding .bed structure, and second bias means reacting against thesupport arms to urge them into the opposite direction -to assist inovercoming the forces resisting unfolding of the folding bed structure.

6. In a folding sofa bed, in combination: a sofa bed frame, a foldingbed structure on said frame and including a head section, an inner bedsection pivoted on the outer end of the inner section, and an outer bedsection pivoted on the outer end of the hinge section, said sectionsbeing movable between a coplanar bed position and a fully foldedposition within the sofa bed frame, first bias means reacting againstcertain of said sections to urge them in a direction toward bedposition, and second bias means reacting against certain of saidsec-tions to urge them in a direction toward fully folded position. l

7. In a folding sofa bed as defined by claim 6 characterized by, saidbias means being springs.

8. In a folding soft bed, in combination: a base having a fixed rearrail, a pair of fixed end rails, and a fixed front rail; a folding bedstructure including a head bed section pivoted on the inner end of aninner section, a hinge bed section pivoted on the outer end of the innersection, and an outer bed section pivoted on the outer end of the hingesection, said bed sections being movable from a fully folded position inwhich the head bed section is upright immediately inside the rear rail,the inner section is generally horizontal at the bottom of the base, thehinge `section is generally upright immediately behind the front rail,and the outer section is inverted substantially parallel to the innersection and below the top surface of the front rail, through aninclined, partially folded position in which all the bed sections are insubstantially the same relationship to each other as in said foldedposition and the inner section is partially above the top of the frontrail, to an intermediate position in which the connecting links and theinner section are coplanar and the hinge section and foot section occupysubstantially the same positions as when fully folded; bed supportingmeans including a pair of first and second hanger links supporting theinner end of the head bed section on the end rails near the rear rail, apair of support arms pivoted on the end rails near the front rail andhaving free ends, a pair of first suspension links connecting the freeends of the support arms to the head bed section, -rneans including apair of intermediate suspension links connecting the free ends of saidsupport arms to the inner section, and a pair of first coordinatinglinks connected `between the support arms and the second hangerlinks-and a pair of second coordinating links connected between thesupport arms and the first hanger links, the bed supporting means beingswingable to move the head and inner fbed sections between a coplanarbed position and a folded position with the head bed section generallyupright at the rear of the base and the inner section within and at thebottom of the base.

9. In a folding sofa bed as defined by clairn 8 characterized by, firstbias means reacting to urge folding of the bed structure when in itsunfolded bed position, and second bias means reacting to urge unfoldingof the bed structure when in its folded sofa position.

10. In a folding sofa bed, in combination: a base having a fixed rearrail, a pair of fixed end rails, a fixed front rail with a planar topsurface, and a back frame that includes a fixed crossbar forward of therear rail and in a horizontal plane that is above the plane of said topsurface by a distance which is only a small fraction of the height ofsaid front rail; a folding bed structure including a head section, andan inner bed section pivoted on the outer end of the head section, ahinge bed section pivoted on the outer end of the inner section, and anouter bed section pivoted on the outer end of the hinge section, saidbed sections being movable from a fully folded position in which theconnecting links are upright immediately inside the .rear rail andbehind the crossbar, the inner section is generally horizontal at thebottom of the base, the hinge section is generally upright immediatelybehind the front rail, and the outer section is inverted substantiallyparallel to the inner section and below the top surface of the frontrail, through an inclined partially folded position in which all the bedsections are in substantially the same relationship to each other as insaid folded position and the inner section is partially above the top ofthe front rail, to an intermediate position in which the connectinglinks and the inner section are coplanar and the hinge section and footsection occupy substantially the same positions as when fully folded;bed supporting means including a pair of first and second hanger linkssupporting the inner ends of the head section on the end rails near therear rail, a pair of support arms pivoted on the end rails near thefront rail and having free ends, a pair of first suspension linksconnected the free ends of the support arms to the head section, meansincluding a pair of intermediate suspension links connecting the freeends of the support arms to the inner section, and a pair of firstcoordinating links connected between the support arms and the secondhanger links, and a pair of second coordinating links connected betweenthe support arms and the first hanger links, the first and secondcoordinating links extending substantially parallel to each other whenthe bed structure is in its unfolded bed position, the support arms andthe link-s cooperating to permit the head bed section to be moved underthe fixed crossbar on the soft bed with substantial clearance betweenthe head bed section and the fixed crossbar, and with substantialclearance between the head bed section and the sofa bed support.

11. In a folding sofa :bed as defined by claim 10 characterized by,first bias means reacting to urge folding of the bed structure when inits unfolded bed position, and second bias means reacting to urgeunfolding of the bed structure whenin its folded sofa position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,209,378 10/1965 Laemmle 5-133,247,526 4/1966 Rogers 5--13 3,321,777 5/1967 Pokorny 5-13 3,380,0834/1968 Mikos 5-13 CASMIR A. NUNBERG, Primary Examiner

